Server, method, and program for supplying desulfurization catalyst-related information, and computer-readable recording medium recording same

ABSTRACT

A server is configured to be connected to a user terminal via a network, and to supply a desulfurization catalyst lifetime of a user plant to a user based on desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and a desulfurization catalyst lifetime function. The server includes a processor and a memory storing computer-readable instructions. When the computer-readable instructions are executed by the processor, the server receives user plant-related data and a user desulfurization catalyst performance prediction condition from the user terminal to the user plant based on a comparison between the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and the obtained user plant-related data, calculates a catalyst lifetime for the user&#39;s desulfurization catalyst based on the obtained user desulfurization catalyst performance prediction condition and the user desulfurization catalyst lifetime function, and transmits the calculated catalyst lifetime to the user terminal.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a server, a method, a program and acomputer-readable recording medium storing the same, for supplyingdesulfurization catalyst-related information to a user.

BACKGROUND ART

In a petroleum refining process, a desulfurization has conventionallybeen performed to remove a sulfur content contained in a feedstock. Forexample, hydrodesulfurization in which a petroleum fraction is passedthrough a catalyst together with hydrogen under high temperature andhigh pressure to thereby remove impurities such as a sulfur content etc.from the petroleum fraction has been generally known as thedesulfurization performed in a petroleum refinery and the like.

The catalyst used for such desulfurization is degraded in accordancewith use. The degradation of the catalyst changes operating conditionsof a desulfurization plants, such as required temperature and hydrogenconsumption. For this reason, degradation of the catalyst with passageof time is simulated in advance to obtain most suitable operatingconditions of the desulfurization plants (e.g., Patent Documents 1 to 4and the like).

For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a catalyst use supportingmethod. In this method, information about catalyst reaction proceedingin a reactor operated by a chemical company (user) is transmitted to acatalyst supplying company via a communication network, and the catalystsupplying company generates operation information for the reactor by useof a simulator apparatus based on the information about the catalystreaction, and sends the operation information back to the chemicalcompany via the communication network.

Simulation is performed in this manner based on the information aboutthe catalyst reaction. Accordingly, a lifetime of the catalyst can bepredicted, and an operation, for example, for increasing/decreasingproduction can be performed according to circumstances. Therefore, thecatalyst can be used efficiently so that production cost of a chemicalproduct can be reduced.

PRIOR ART DOCUMENTS Patent Documents Patent Document 1: JP2003-58206APatent Document 2: JPH10-60455A Patent Document 3: JP2003-27069A PatentDocument 4: JP2007-126684A SUMMARY OF INVENTION Technical Problem

However, the method disclosed in Patent Document 1 is aimed atsimulating a reaction state in a computer. To this end, for example,details of equipment specifications etc. related to the reaction, suchas the number of tubes in the reactor and the length of each of thetubes have to be input to the computer. This input is howevercomplicated.

In addition, in Patent Document 1, the degradation of the catalyst withpassage of time is predicted in a manner originated by technology heldby the catalyst supplying company. For example, a dynamic model using acatalyst reaction rate equation is used as a prediction engine. However,information for the catalyst lifetime prediction held by the catalystsupplying company provides prediction merely in an environment in whichthe catalyst supplying company has performed analysis. In some cases,the information for the catalyst lifetime prediction may show a largedifference from a change in the performance of the catalyst in acommercial plant.

Particularly, product oil is refined from various feedstock oils inpetroleum refining, differently from petrochemistry in which a productis manufactured from single feedstock oil. Therefore, the number ofnecessary parameters for the degradation prediction of thedesulfurization catalyst is overwhelmingly large. For this reason,accuracy of performance simulation of the desulfurization catalyst forthe desulfurization units provided in a petroleum refining plant etc.cannot be enhanced unless sufficient pilot plant data is held.

When there is a large difference between a simulation result and achange of the catalyst performance in a commercial plant, the catalystcannot be efficiently used. Therefore, manufacturing cost of producedoil increases.

In consideration of such a situation, it is an object of the presentinvention to provide a server, a method, a program and acomputer-readable recording medium storing the same, for performinghighly accurate performance prediction of a desulfurization catalystwithout performing a complicated process such as a plant simulation, andfor easily supplying desulfurization catalyst-related information aboutthe highly accurate performance prediction of the desulfurizationcatalyst to a user who does not have necessary information for theperformance prediction of the desulfurization catalyst.

Means for Solving the Problem

The present invention has been made to solve the aforementioned problemin the background art. A server according to the present inventionsupplies desulfurization catalyst-related information. The server is tobe connected to a user terminal via a network to supply adesulfurization catalyst lifetime of a user plant to a user based ondesulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and a desulfurization catalystlifetime function. The server includes a processor and a memory storingcomputer-readable instructions. When the computer-readable instructionsare executed by the processor, the server receives user plant-relateddata and a user desulfurization catalyst performance predictioncondition from the user terminal, generates from the desulfurizationcatalyst lifetime function a user desulfurization catalyst lifetimefunction tailored to the user plant based on a comparison between thedesulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and the received userplant-related data, calculates a catalyst lifetime for a userdesulfurization catalyst based on the received user desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction condition and the user desulfurizationcatalyst lifetime function, and transmits the calculated catalystlifetime to the user terminal.

The server according to the present invention may be configured suchthat, when the computer-readable instructions are executed by theprocessor, the server further generates from a hydrogen consumptionfunction a user hydrogen consumption function tailored to the user plantbased on the comparison between the desulfurization catalyst pilot plantdata and the received user plant-related data, calculates a hydrogenconsumption for the user desulfurization catalyst based on the receiveduser desulfurization catalyst performance prediction condition and theuser hydrogen consumption function, and transmits the calculatedhydrogen consumption to the user terminal.

The server according to the present invention may be configured suchthat, when the computer-readable instructions are executed by theprocessor, the server further generates from a product yield function auser product yield function tailored to the user plant based on thecomparison between the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and thereceived user plant-related data, calculates a product yield for theuser desulfurization catalyst based on the received user desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction condition and the user product yieldfunction, and transmits the calculated product yield to the userterminal.

The server according to the present invention may be configured tocalculate a tuning parameter based on a comparison between the userplant-related data and the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data,and to generate, from the tuning parameter and the desulfurizationcatalyst-related function, the user desulfurization catalyst lifetimefunction tailored to the user plant.

With the server according to the present invention, the userplant-related data may include at least one of user plant operatingdata, the user plant operating data being operating data for apredetermined period in the user plant and including at least anoperating condition, a feedstock oil characteristic and a produced oilcharacteristic, a kind of catalyst to be used in the user plant, andequipment setting information of the user plant.

With the server according to the present invention, the userdesulfurization catalyst performance prediction condition may include atleast one of an operating condition, a feedstock oil characteristic anda produced oil characteristic.

With the server according to the present invention, the desulfurizationcatalyst lifetime function may include at least one of a degradationfunction for direct desulfurization, a degradation function for indirectdesulfurization, a degradation function for light gas oildesulfurization, and a degradation function for kerosenedesulfurization.

The server according to the present invention may be configured toreceive the user plant-related data including at least a kind ofcatalyst and to generate the user desulfurization catalyst lifetimefunction based on the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant datacorresponding to the kind of catalyst.

A method according to the present invention is executed by a processorto supply desulfurization catalyst-related information. The methodsupplies a desulfurization catalyst lifetime of a user plant to a uservia a network based on desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and adesulfurization catalyst lifetime function. The method includes steps ofreceiving user plant-related data and a user desulfurization catalystperformance prediction condition from the user terminal, generating fromthe desulfurization catalyst lifetime function a user desulfurizationcatalyst lifetime function tailored to the user plant based on acomparison between the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and thereceived user plant-related data, calculating a catalyst lifetime for auser desulfurization catalyst based on the received user desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction condition and the user desulfurizationcatalyst lifetime function, and transmitting the calculated catalystlifetime information to the user terminal.

The method according to the present invention may include steps ofgenerating, from a hydrogen consumption function, a user hydrogenconsumption function tailored to the user plant based on the comparisonbetween the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and the receiveduser plant-related data, calculating a hydrogen consumption for the userdesulfurization catalyst based on the received user desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction condition and the user hydrogenconsumption function, and transmitting the calculated hydrogenconsumption to the user terminal.

The method according to the present invention may include generating,from a product yield function, a user product yield function tailored tothe user plant based on the comparison between the desulfurizationcatalyst pilot plant data and the received user plant-related data,calculating a product yield for the user desulfurization catalyst basedon the received user desulfurization catalyst performance predictioncondition and the user product yield function, and transmitting thecalculated product yield to the user terminal.

The method according to the present invention may include steps ofcalculating a tuning parameter based on a comparison between the userplant-related data and the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data,and generating, from the tuning parameter and the user desulfurizationcatalyst lifetime function, the user desulfurization catalyst lifetimefunction tailored to the user plant.

With the method according to the present invention, the userplant-related data may include at least one of user plant operatingdata, the user plant operating data being operating data for apredetermined period in the user plant and including at least anoperating condition, a feedstock oil characteristic and a produced oilcharacteristic, a kind of catalyst to be used in the user plant, andequipment setting information of the user plant.

With the method according to the present invention, the desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction condition may include at least one of anoperating condition, a feedstock oil characteristic and a produced oilcharacteristic.

With the method according to the present invention, the desulfurizationcatalyst lifetime function may include at least one of a degradationfunction for direct desulfurization, a degradation function for indirectdesulfurization, a degradation function for light oil desulfurization,and a degradation function for kerosene desulfurization.

With the method according to the present invention, at least a kind ofcatalyst may be received as the user plant-related data so that the userdesulfurization catalyst lifetime function can be generated based on thedesulfurization catalyst pilot plant data corresponding to the kind ofcatalyst.

Advantageous Effect of Invention

According to the present invention, a user desulfurizationcatalyst-related function tailored to a user plant can be generated froma desulfurization catalyst-related function obtained in advance in apilot plant for each catalyst, operating data of a user plant, etc.Thus, the performance of the desulfurization catalyst can be predictedwith high accuracy without performing a complicated process such as aplant simulation.

Even when a user does not have necessary information for the performanceprediction of the desulfurization catalyst, the performance of thedesulfurization catalyst can be predicted with high accuracy by simplyinputting certain information to a user terminal.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a systematic configuration view illustrating a schematicconfiguration of a desulfurization catalyst performance predictionsystem according to one example.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating a flow of generating a userdesulfurization catalyst-related function using the desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a flow chart illustrating a flow of calculatingdesulfurization catalyst-related information using the desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction system of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is an example of a display screen for inputting desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction conditions from a user terminal.

FIG. 5 is an example of a display screen of the desulfurizationcatalyst-related information displayed on the user terminal.

FIG. 6 is another example of the display screen of the desulfurizationcatalyst-related information displayed on the user terminal.

EMBODIMENTS OF INVENTION

Hereinafter, embodiments (examples) of the present invention will bedescribed in more detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is asystematic configuration view illustrating a schematic configuration ofa desulfurization catalyst performance prediction system according toone example. FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating a flow of generating auser desulfurization catalyst-related function using the desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction system of FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a flow chartillustrating a flow of calculating desulfurization catalyst-relatedinformation using the desulfurization catalyst performance predictionsystem of FIG. 1.

As shown in FIG. 1, the desulfurization catalyst performance predictionsystem 10 according to this example has a server computer 12 and acommunication server computer 14. The server computer 12 has adesulfurization catalyst pilot plant data memory 20, a user plantinformation memory 22, a desulfurization catalyst-related functionmemory 24, a processor 13, etc. The communication server computer 14 isconnected to user terminals 16 via a network 18.

The server computer 12 and the communication server computer 14 may beany existing computer, and, for example, cloud computing may be used.

In this example, the server computer 12 for arithmetic processing andthe communication server computer 14 for communication processing areconfigured as separate computers. Thus, the server computer 12 forarithmetic processing is protected from unauthorized access etc. It is amatter of course that the server computer 12 and the communicationserver computer 14 may be configured into one computer, or each of theserver computer 12 and the communication server computer 14 may beconstituted by a plurality of computers by use of distributed computing.

Desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data is stored for each kind ofcatalyst in the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data memory 20. The“desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data” in the present descriptionis data that is obtained by an experiment on a desulfurization catalystby the pilot plant. For example, required temperature, a tendency tocatalyst degradation (degradation factor), or the like is included inthe “desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data”.

User plant-related data is stored for each user in the user plantinformation memory 22. The “user plant-related data” in the presentdescription is operating data for a predetermined period in a user plantowned by the user. At least one of operating data of the user plant, akind of catalyst to be used in the user plant, and equipment settinginformation of the user plant is included in the “user plant-relateddata”. The operating data includes at least operating conditions,feedstock oil characteristics and produced oil characteristics. When auser desulfurization catalyst-related function has been generated, theuser desulfurization catalyst-related function is also stored as theuser plant-related data in the user plant information memory 22, as willdescribed later.

The “equipment setting information” in the present description isinformation about working conditions of the user plant. The “equipmentsetting information” includes, for example, an upper limit temperaturefor operation, an upper limit pressure for operation, an upper limitprocessing quantity for operation, a catalyst filling amount, etc., inthe user plant.

A desulfurization catalyst-related function which is a model expressionis stored in the desulfurization catalyst-related function memory 24. Inthe present description, the “desulfurization catalyst-related function”includes at least a desulfurization catalyst lifetime function forcalculating a catalyst lifetime for the desulfurization catalyst. The“desulfurization catalyst-related function” means a function or afunction group including a hydrogen consumption function for calculatinghydrogen consumption or a product field function for calculating aproduct yield in addition to the desulfurization catalyst lifetimefunction.

In the present description, the “catalyst lifetime” is a conceptincluding not only an original lifetime (a period between a use startand a use limit) of the desulfurization catalyst but also a period orday and time which can be calculated from the catalyst lifetime, such asa period between a present time point and the use limit, day and time ofthe use limit, recommended day and time which is not the use limit butthe day and time at which exchange is recommended (for example, half ayear before the use limit, etc.).

The server computer 12 according to the present example is configured totransmit the “catalyst lifetime” including the concept of the period orthe day and time to one of the user terminals 16 based on the calculatedlifetime of the desulfurization catalyst, as will be described later.

The desulfurization catalyst lifetime function expresses a degradationlevel of the desulfurization catalyst as a function of the number ofdays t of oil passage. The degradation level ϕ of the desulfurizationcatalyst is defined as a ratio of a reaction rate constant Kt for oilpassage of t days to a reaction rate constant K0 for oil passage of 0day. That is, the degradation level ϕ can be expressed as ϕ=Kt/K0.

The degradation of the desulfurization catalyst is mainly influenced bycoke degradation and metal degradation. Therefore, it is preferable thateach of a function expression based on the coke degradation and afunction expression based on the metal degradation is assumed as thedesulfurization catalyst lifetime function.

The coke degradation means catalyst degradation due to cokes generatedin a catalyst reaction process. The metal degradation means catalystdegradation due to disposition of a metal content contained in feedstockoil.

For example, there are a plurality of methods such as directdesulfurization, indirect desulfurization, light gas oil desulfurizationand kerosene desulfurization. Degradation rates of the desulfurizationcatalyst by the methods vary from one another. Accordingly, thedesulfurization catalyst lifetime function varies from one of themethods to another. Therefore, it is preferable that at least one of adegradation function for the direct desulfurization, a degradationfunction for the indirect desulfurization, a degradation function forthe light gas oil desulfurization and a degradation function for thekerosene desulfurization is stored as the desulfurization catalystlifetime function in a catalyst degradation function memory.

The hydrogen consumption function or the product yield function can becalculated by a background-art existing method. The desulfurizationcatalyst pilot plant data memory 20, the user plant information memory22, and the desulfurization catalyst-related function memory 24 may beformed by an internal recording medium such as a hard disk drive or asolid state drive of the server computer 12 or may be formed by anexternal recording medium such as an external hard disk drive or a USBmemory connected to the server computer 12.

The communication server computer 14 has a user information memory 26 inwhich a user identification code of each user of the desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction system 10 is stored. For example, asecure code uniquely determined by a combination of a login ID and apassword can be used as the user identification code.

The network 18 can be any computer network without any specificlimitation, and may be the Internet or an intranet. As for the userterminals 16, any terminals can be used, for example, a general-purposecomputer such as a desktop computer, a laptop computer or a tabletcomputer, etc. or a dedicated computer used in the user plant.

The desulfurization catalyst performance prediction system 10 of thepresent example configured in this way generates a user desulfurizationcatalyst-related function by a flow shown in FIG. 2. The generation ofthe following user desulfurization catalyst-related function can beimplemented as a program (computer-readable instructions) executed bythe processor 13 of the server computer 12.

First, a user uses one of the user terminals 16 to make connection tothe communication server computer 14. Thus, a login screen is displayedon the user terminal 16, and the user inputs a login ID and a password(S11).

The communication server computer 14 generates a secure code from theinput login ID and the input password (S12) and matches the secure codewith user identification codes stored in the user information memory 26(S13). When there is one of the user identification codes matched withthe secure code, the login succeeds so that the process is continued.When there is none of the user identification codes matched with thesecure code, the login fails so that the process is suspended (S19).

When the login succeeds, searching is performed to find out whether userplant-related data of the logging-in user is present or not in the userplant information memory 22 of the server computer 12 (S14). When theuser plant-related data is present in the user plant information memory22, desulfurization catalyst-related information is calculated by use ofa user desulfurization catalyst-related function stored in the userplant information memory 22, as will be described later.

On the other hand, when the user plant-related data of the logging-inuser is not present in the user plant information memory 22, a screenfor inputting the user plant-related data is displayed on the userterminal 16, and the user inputs the user plant-related data (S15).

Upon reception of the input user plant-related data, the server computer12 stores the user plant-related data into the user plant informationmemory 22 (S16). The server computer 12 compares the user plant-relateddata stored in the user plant information memory 22 with desulfurizationcatalyst pilot plant data stored in the desulfurization catalyst pilotplant data memory 20 to thereby calculate tuning parameters (S17).

Here, the tuning parameters are parameters for correcting differencesbetween the user plant-related data and the desulfurization catalystpilot plant data. The differences between the user plant-related dataand the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data are, for example, amachine difference between the pilot plant and the user plant, adifference between operating conditions in the pilot plant and operatingconditions in the user plant, a difference between a kind of oilgenerated in the pilot plant and a kind of oil generated in the userplant, etc.

A desulfurization catalyst-related function which is a model expressionstored in the desulfurization catalyst-related function memory 24 iscorrected based on the thus obtained tuning parameters so that a userdesulfurization catalyst-related function tailored to the user plant isgenerated (S18).

Next, the desulfurization catalyst performance prediction system 10calculates desulfurization catalyst-related information, as shown inFIG. 3. The calculation of the following desulfurizationcatalyst-related information can be implemented as a program(computer-readable instructions) executed by the processor 13 of theserver computer 12.

First, the user inputs user desulfurization catalyst performanceprediction conditions from the user terminal 16 (S21), as shown in FIG.4. In the present description, the “user desulfurization catalystperformance prediction conditions” are preconditions for predictingperformance of the desulfurization catalyst in the user plant, andcontain at least one of operating conditions, feedstock oilcharacteristics and produced oil characteristics.

The server computer 12 calculates the desulfurization catalyst-relatedinformation based on the input user desulfurization catalyst performanceprediction conditions and the user desulfurization catalyst-relatedfunction stored in the user plant information memory 22 (S22).

For example, when the user desulfurization catalyst performanceprediction conditions are applied to the user desulfurization catalystlifetime function which has been tuned to the user plant use, atransition of required temperature of the desulfurization catalyst, i.e.a lifetime of the desulfurization catalyst can be calculated. The“required temperature” means reaction temperature necessary forobtaining a fixed sulfur content of refined oil.

When the user desulfurization catalyst performance prediction conditionsare applied to a user hydrogen consumption function in a similar manneror the same manner, hydrogen consumption in the user plant can becalculated. When the user desulfurization catalyst performanceprediction conditions are applied to a user product yield function, aproduct yield in the user plant can be calculated.

The desulfurization catalyst-related information calculated thus istransmitted from the server computer 12 to the communication servercomputer 14. The communication server computer 14 transmits thedesulfurization catalyst-related information to the user terminal 16 viathe network 18 (S23), and displays the desulfurization catalyst-relatedinformation shown in FIG. 5 on the user terminal 16.

The communication server computer 14 may cause the user terminal 16 toperform display using an infographic, such as a graph indicating thenumber of lapsed days and the transition of the required temperature asthe catalyst lifetime of the desulfurization catalyst, as shown in FIG.6.

The desulfurization catalyst-related information includes at least thecatalyst lifetime of the desulfurization catalyst, and may include thehydrogen consumption and the product yield. The desulfurizationcatalyst-related information may also include, for example, informationabout evaluation of economic efficiency, information about catalystselection, etc.

The information about the evaluation of the economic efficiency can, forexample, include manufacturing cost etc. of the produced oil calculatedbased on the catalyst lifetime of the desulfurization catalyst, a unitprice of the feedstock oil, etc. The information about the catalystselection can, for example, include information of a catalyst which canminimize the manufacturing cost of the produced oil, comparationinformation between the catalyst currently used by the user and thecatalyst which can minimize the manufacturing cost, etc. by use ofdesulfurization catalyst pilot plant data of desulfurization catalystsstored in the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data memory 20.

The desulfurization catalyst-related information is uniquely determinedfrom the user plant-related data and the user desulfurization catalystperformance prediction condition. For example, where user plant-relateddata, a user desulfurization catalyst characteristic predictioncondition, a user desulfurization catalyst-related function anddesulfurization catalyst-related information of a user A are designatedby A1, A2, fa, and A3 respectively, and user plant-related data, a userdesulfurization catalyst characteristic prediction condition, a userdesulfurization catalyst-related function and desulfurizationcatalyst-related information of a user B are designated by B1, B2, fb,and B3 respectively,

(1) if A1≠B1 and A2≠B2, then fa≠fb and A3≠B3(2) if A1=B1 and A2≠B2, then fa=fb and A3≠B3(3) if A1≠B1 and A2=B2, then fa≠fb and A3≠B3(4) if A1=B1 and A2=B2, then fa=fb and A3=B3

In the present example, the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant datastored in the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data memory 20 isupdated suitably by an administrator or the like of the desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction system 10.

For example, after a lapse of one month, data about a predeterminedcatalyst a is accumulated. Therefore, when the desulfurization catalystpilot plant data updated after one month is used, a lifetime can bepredicted with higher accuracy than when the data of one month ago isused. Therefore, the same result as at present cannot be always obtainedone month later even when the same values are input as the userplant-related data and the user desulfurization catalyst performanceprediction conditions.

When the desulfurization catalyst-related information is intended to beobtained by use of the desulfurization pilot plant data updatedsuitably, it is rather general that a result which will be obtained onemonth later is different from a result which is obtained at present.Thus, the desulfurization catalyst-related information can be obtainedby use of the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data updatedsuitably. Accordingly, according to the desulfurization catalystperformance prediction system 10 of the present example, prediction canbe made with higher accuracy as days go on.

The desulfurization catalyst-related information providing method can becarried out by the aforementioned procedure. When the desulfurizationcatalyst-related information is provided thus, the user can easilyobtain information about a lifetime of the desulfurization catalyst withhigh accuracy even if the user does not possess the pilot plant etc.

While a preferred embodiment of the present invention has been describedabove, the present invention is not limited thereto. In theaforementioned example, the desulfurization catalyst performanceprediction system 10 has been described as a client server model by useof the server computer 12. However, various changes can be made withoutdeparting from the object of the present invention. For example, thedesulfurization catalyst performance prediction system 10 can beconfigured by use of a stand-alone computer.

The programs for making the computer execute generation of theaforementioned user desulfurization catalyst-related function andcalculation of the desulfurization catalyst-related information and acomputer-readable recording medium having the programs recorded thereon,such as a magnetic tape (such as a digital data storage (DSS)), amagnetic disk (such as a hard disk drive (HDD) or a flexible disk (FD)),an optical disc (such as a compact disc (CD), a digital versatile disc(DVD) or a Blu-ray disc (BD)), a magneto-optical disk (MO) or a flashmemory (such as an SSD (Solid State Drive), a memory card or a USBmemory) are also included as a form of the present invention.

The present application is based on a Japanese Patent Application No.2016-247762 filed on Dec. 21, 2016, the content of which is incorporatedherein by reference.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

According to the present invention, a performance of a desulfurizationcatalyst can be predicted with high accuracy without performing acomplicated process such as a plant simulation.

DESCRIPTION OF REFERENCE SIGNS

-   10 desulfurization catalyst performance prediction system-   12 server computer-   13 processor-   14 communication server computer-   16 user terminal-   18 network-   20 desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data memory-   22 user plant information memory-   24 desulfurization catalyst-related function memory-   26 user information memory

1. A server to be connected to a user terminal via a network to supply adesulfurization catalyst lifetime of a user plant to a user based ondesulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and a desulfurization catalystlifetime function, the server comprising: a processor and a memorystoring computer-readable instructions, wherein, when thecomputer-readable instructions are executed by the processor, the serverreceives user plant-related data and a user desulfurization catalystperformance prediction condition from the user terminal, generates fromthe desulfurization catalyst lifetime function a user desulfurizationcatalyst lifetime function tailored to the user plant based on acomparison between the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and thereceived user plant-related data, calculates a catalyst lifetime for auser desulfurization catalyst based on the received user desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction condition and the user desulfurizationcatalyst lifetime function, and transmits the calculated catalystlifetime to the user terminal.
 2. The server according to claim 1,wherein, when the computer-readable instructions are executed by theprocessor, the server further generates from a hydrogen consumptionfunction a user hydrogen consumption function tailored to the user plantbased on the comparison between the desulfurization catalyst pilot plantdata and the received user plant-related data, calculates a hydrogenconsumption for the user desulfurization catalyst based on the receiveduser desulfurization catalyst performance prediction condition and theuser hydrogen consumption function, and transmits the calculatedhydrogen consumption to the user terminal.
 3. The server according toclaim 1, wherein, when the computer-readable instructions are executedby the processor, the server further generates from a product yieldfunction a user product yield function tailored to the user plant basedon the comparison between the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant dataand the received user plant-related data, calculates a product yield forthe user desulfurization catalyst based on the received userdesulfurization catalyst performance prediction condition and the userproduct yield function, and transmits the calculated product yield tothe user terminal.
 4. The server according to claim 1, wherein theserver calculates a tuning parameter based on a comparison between theuser plant-related data and the desulfurization catalyst pilot plantdata, and generates, from the tuning parameter and the desulfurizationcatalyst-related function, the user desulfurization catalyst lifetimefunction tailored to the user plant.
 5. The server according to claim 1,wherein the user plant-related data includes at least one of user plantoperating data, the user plant operating data being operating data for apredetermined period in the user plant and including at least anoperating condition, a feedstock oil characteristic and a produced oilcharacteristic, a kind of catalyst to be used in the user plant, andequipment setting information of the user plant.
 6. The server accordingto claim 1, wherein the user desulfurization catalyst performanceprediction condition includes at least one of an operating condition, afeedstock oil characteristic and a produced oil characteristic.
 7. Theserver according to claim 1, wherein the desulfurization catalystlifetime function includes at least one of a degradation function fordirect desulfurization, a degradation function for indirectdesulfurization, a degradation function for light gas oildesulfurization, and a degradation function for kerosenedesulfurization.
 8. The server according to claim 1, wherein the serverreceives the user plant-related data including at least a kind ofcatalyst, and generate the user desulfurization catalyst lifetimefunction based on the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant datacorresponding to the kind of catalyst.
 9. A method to be executed by aprocessor, for supplying a desulfurization catalyst lifetime of a userplant to a user via a network based on desulfurization catalyst pilotplant data and a desulfurization catalyst lifetime function, the methodcomprising steps of: receiving user plant-related data and a userdesulfurization catalyst performance prediction condition from the userterminal; generating from the desulfurization catalyst lifetime functiona user desulfurization catalyst lifetime function tailored to the userplant based on a comparison between the desulfurization catalyst pilotplant data and the received user plant-related data; calculating acatalyst lifetime for a user desulfurization catalyst based on thereceived user desulfurization catalyst performance prediction conditionand the user desulfurization catalyst lifetime function; andtransmitting the calculated catalyst lifetime information to the userterminal.
 10. The method according to claim 9, comprising steps of:generating, from a hydrogen consumption function, a user hydrogenconsumption function tailored to the user plant based on the comparisonbetween the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and the receiveduser plant-related data; calculating a hydrogen consumption for the userdesulfurization catalyst based on the received user desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction condition and the user hydrogenconsumption function; and transmitting the calculated hydrogenconsumption to the user terminal.
 11. The method according to claim 9,comprising: generating, from a product yield function, a user productyield function tailored to the user plant based on the comparisonbetween the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data and the receiveduser plant-related data; calculating a product yield for the userdesulfurization catalyst based on the received user desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction condition and the user product yieldfunction; and transmitting the calculated product yield to the userterminal.
 12. The method according to claim 9, comprising steps of:calculating a tuning parameter based on a comparison between the userplant-related data and the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant data;and generating, from the tuning parameter and the user desulfurizationcatalyst lifetime function, the user desulfurization catalyst lifetimefunction tailored to the user plant.
 13. The method according to claim9, wherein the user plant-related data includes at least one of: userplant operating data, the user plant operating data being operating datafor a predetermined period in the user plant and including at least anoperating condition, a feedstock oil characteristic and a produced oilcharacteristic; a kind of catalyst to be used in the user plant; andequipment setting information of the user plant.
 14. The methodaccording to claim 9, wherein the desulfurization catalyst performanceprediction condition includes at least one of an operating condition, afeedstock oil characteristic and a produced oil characteristic.
 15. Themethod according to claim 9, wherein the desulfurization catalystlifetime function includes at least one of a degradation function fordirect desulfurization, a degradation function for indirectdesulfurization, a degradation function for light gas oildesulfurization, and a degradation function for kerosenedesulfurization.
 16. The method according to claim 9, comprisingreceiving the user plant-related data including at least a kind ofcatalyst; and generating the user desulfurization catalyst lifetimefunction based on the desulfurization catalyst pilot plant datacorresponding to the kind of catalyst.
 17. (canceled)
 18. Anon-transitory computer-readable recording medium storing a programwhich, when executed by a computer, causes the computer to execute amethod for supplying a desulfurization catalyst lifetime of a user plantto a user via a network based on desulfurization catalyst pilot plantdata and a desulfurization catalyst lifetime function, the methodcomprising: receiving user plant-related data and a user desulfurizationcatalyst performance prediction condition from the user terminal;generating from the desulfurization catalyst lifetime function a userdesulfurization catalyst lifetime function tailored to the user plantbased on a comparison between the desulfurization catalyst pilot plantdata and the received user plant-related data; calculating a catalystlifetime for a user desulfurization catalyst based on the received userdesulfurization catalyst performance prediction condition and the userdesulfurization catalyst lifetime function; and transmitting thecalculated catalyst lifetime information to the user terminal.